Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Hello - long time no hear! Sorry... I started working again and things are chaotic. On top of that, I.am.tired. Long shifts standing at a cash register. It reminds me that I am actually in my 40s now and no longer 20-something. Ouch!

For what is considered a minor position, there was 4 straight days of orientation. Cripes I didn't even have that when I worked for the Federal Government! The training was full time during the days which created its own stress; son had an anxiety attack the second day I was gone. The schedule meant I was gone before the kids got up and didn't arrive back home until the supper hour. For someone who goes to school only half days, this made for long and lonely afternoons.

My employer is trying to accommodate my needs and we are still working on a 40 hour a week schedule. The full daytime hours are limited though; making it possible to be home in the morning or in the afternoon.

Since starting this work however I am zonked by the time I get home. A quick supper and then you will find me dozing somewhere - anywhere - in the house. I now have 2 days off and then back to the "grind". The customers for the most part are very friendly and understanding. They are a great bunch of people coming through there.

With 2 days off there is so much to do and just not enough hours! I may be just short & sweet here until I get things running smoother...

Monday, May 19, 2008

No one who knows me would expect a headliner like that! It came about in a funny and unexpected way and if you read today's post you will know why I wrote that.

The family and I made a swift trip to Bangor Maine last Thursday. We spent the night, shopped 'till we dropped then headed back north of the border. It was quite the learning experience in different ways!

The first is related to the post's title. Daughter has rather unusual-sized feet (thanks Mom!) and finding shoes that fit is almost impossible here. On a whim and remembering I've found good shoes in the U.S., we popped into a shoe store where daughter discovered many pretty shoes that fit her feet! She was estatic! Thrilled! She found 4 pairs of trendy, comfortable shoes and clutching them to her chest, while dancing down the aisle she proclaimed, "God BLESS America!". Or in other words....THANK-YOU-fate-that-American-women-have-big-feet-like-mine-and-like-to-wear-pretty-shoes-too! I loved the price! There was a sale of course so the 4 pairs of shoes cost $100 American, which is the same in Canadian dollars right now. Compare THAT to the last time we found shoes that fit her - in Alberta at the West Edmonton Mall. We found 2 pairs that fit, and they were $120 and $140 A PIECE. God bless America, indeed!

Daughter also discovered "Khols" which was very good to her. A brand new wardrobe came home with her; well needed as she has slimmed down noticeably and needed smaller clothes. We also stumbled across that brilliant hair dye she's been seeking up here to no avail. She settled for blue and pink dye and also purchased the bleach kit. She streaked her hair blue, although there is violent debate if the colour is actually "blue", "green", "aqua" or "turquoise". I think it is a turquoise colour myself. Hubby isn't keen on the hair colour but it doesn't bother me. I suppose that is because I used to experiment with MY hair and turned out a few shades of red, orange...black or blonde.

Son did not cope well at all. Crossing the border frightened him. Due to his nature of being inappropriate at the MOST inopportune times we did have to warn him to keep quiet and that may have increased his anxiety. He was overwhelmed for much of the trip and acted out quite a bit, making shopping difficult. We did find a store that had many logo shirts that fit him so he was happy while shopping in "Hot Topics". Aside from that he really didn't relax until we returned to the Canadian side of the border. He does not want to go with us the next time we head south. Oh darn. Heh heh heh.

We picked up chicken and milk on the way back; both are at least half the price of the same groceries in Canada. Outrageous! Gas on the Maine side was $1.06 while it was just shy of $1.29 on our side. There were so many stores we didn't even have time to drive by during our rushed trip -- another good reason to go back!

With Asperger's Syndrome one never knows how it will act out with the one having this disorder. Sometimes son does handle changes well but not so much removing him completely from his environment. This was the first time he could verbalize how he was feeling which helped considerably (my blood pressure shot up faster so I had to act on his impending explosion sooner!) . Small, day trips in our local area are much more manageable for him. He was sorry for not coping better but I know there are some things you can't reason with. I took it as a great learning experience as to what his limits are.

Hubby hates to shop. He was grumpy a fair bit and probably needed a pretty spot to sit and put his feet up. He was my shopping monitor; he accompanied me when I peeked into craft stores to ensure I came out in a reasonable time. The trouble was determining "reasonable time". Oh I could've stayed a few more days easily!!

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

To get things started here's a bird or two seen recently about my property -

Ducks are territorial! The little couples visit their favourite spots and squabble with other ducks in the area. You'd think there would be enough water and shoreline for all but some of these guys are quite greedy!

This next colourful duck is a wood duck. Although it is quite late

and maybe my facts are screwed up. I like these guys; apparently as little fluffy babies they like to follow their mothers and so hop out of their nests after mom-bird goes off. Only thing is, their nests are off the ground sometimes to the tune of 15 feet! Not to worry though...apparently they bounce. Yes, the fall and bounce a few times and off they good, as good as new!

I enjoy sitting on my deck or in the backyard, watching all the wildlife living in and around our lake. All the breeds, colours, shapes and sizes. I haven't seen this in over 10 years! It is very relaxing.

I like relaxing. There isn't enough of it right now. Things are a bit hectic, what with me starting work next week and car-hunting. I'm not sure which one is worse. The price of vehicles is absolutely ridiculous! We can't decide between a SUV or a minivan or just a big car. Can you believe I actually judge the backseat by how close my kids will have to sit together? Most often when they are both in the same vehicle as either me or hubby, or both of us...one adult and one kid per row of seats. The further apart those 2 are, the better!

For my sister: daughter went to "Dramafest". This is a 4 day event where many different schools came together to show their acting/stage production/theatre abilities. This year the different schools stayed at a smaller university that is situated on the University of New Brunswick campus. She had a lot of fun but that's all I know since I'm her mother so she doesn't divulge much information my way.

While I am excited about working for the first time in this province, the anxiety and stress builds daily. Son is realizing with each passing day that the time of independence is growing very near...and he's not comfortable with it. I am slowly creating the resource book for him, with his schedules to emergency contacts and so on. I'll have to have a lunch ready for him and also a snack for the afternoon. He isn't comfortable using any kitchen appliance, aside from warming something up in the microwave. Son discovered this morning that he'll be in the house by himself on some mornings ~ starting Tuesday morning. He's quite upset and that builds his anxiety level, and so on and so forth. I wonder what a few days of being by himself in the afternoon will do? Oh, I hope he's mature enough to handle it!!

While trying to sort out a resource book for him, I'm also trying to finish the wedding scrapbook for my girlfriend, while also shopping for a new vehicle ~ plus get everything ready for the job.

Friday, May 9, 2008

Oh this is a good one, folks. You aren't going to believe it.... I had a drug test today as part of the application process for a job. Yes, a job as a cashier. Can you believe it? I couldn't. It is company policy. That included leaving my coat and purse behind, her not only taping the tap and the soap dispenser after I washed my hands (before the sample collection), but also putting some dye into the toilet water to make sure I didn't flush or contaminate my sample. Holy cripes! She did not stay during the....ah.... procedure because that would have been the.final.straw.for.me and I would not have gone any farther.

I didn't make it the most comfortable sequence of events either. I inquired as to different scenarios, what this strip was for, what that box was for. I asked if she wanted to take a souvenir home with her....geez, and they still offered me a position after that?!

"After" involved hanging around while we waited to see if the sample would show a positive result ~ as in drugs in my system. Oh yeah and there was a strip that took the temperature of my sample...to make sure it was nice and warm. Because a cool sample would have been something I sneaked in under my shirt or something. I have never had such a detailed or paranoid procedure done for an urine sample. I can only shake my head in amazement.

I was offered 2 positions, combined for full time work. Except that 40 hours a week will be considered part time by the company for the first year of employment. Which means no benefits, no vacation days or earned sick time.

There is plenty of room for advancement and hard work. I will not provide further details because this company has a lot of presence around here and I will be gainfully employed. You know, cover my ass for a while in case someone from there stumbles onto my blog. Wouldn't that be fun??

The dark side of this is working 40 hours a week...and my son. This has been the stress of the past year since arriving here. What to do with son and how him being on his own will work out. The flip side is not working but stretching our budget to every penny, which doesn't serve my needs or interests very well. Like all of us I want to have some money left over after the necessities are taken care of and to pay down our remaining mortgage as fast as possible. Oops, almost forgot about that new used-car payment too. Yeah....

Some day I will tell you about the other crazy, crazy application procedures for this job I have. I will also tell you what the job is and what company it is for.

Not today though. I've got to see how everything works out first. With son I plan to create a handy reference guide for him, to keep on his person at all times, to walk him through whatever situations he might find himself in. I hope he has matured enough in the past while to handle being alone for a while on a daily basis.... life is just never easy or simple. It's a matter of exchanging one stress for another, isn't it?

What a week. Scary thing is, it isn't over yet! I just might go stick my head in sand and stay there until a new week rolls around! Let's see what has been going on in my not-so-cozy-corner now!

First, we are shopping for another vehicle rather unexpectedly. When we moved to New Brunswick last summer we sold one vehicle in Alberta and shipped the other with us. We kept the Toyota Matrix. We then purchased a truck here. In New Brunswick - UNLIKE Alberta - vehicles must have a safety inspection every year in order to renew the vehicle's registration. Our new (er, used-but=-new-to-us) truck will not pass that inspection without significant work. As in, more money to fix it than what it cost to buy it! Being gone from the land of sea and humidity and salt on the winter roads....we forgot the impact that this environment has on vehicles. That would be r-u-s-t, the number 1 enemy of all vehicles. It seems the body of the truck is rusted badly. Oh I miss Alberta on days like these!

The price of a brand new vehicle is sickening. So we are shopping for a new-but-used car or truck again. A bit of a blow as it was unexpected. Apparently our new lawn tractor just isn't a good enough vehicle to drive to and from work on....

Yes, we bought a lawn tractor. Mowing over 1/2 acre of lawn every freakin' week in this humid and hot climate is brutal. I should know, I did it all last summer. Hubby ordered a red tractor, that being his favourite colour and all. I'm sure I'll look so cute driving around on a bright red tractor with my new diamond earrings sparkling in my ears. Or better yet, every neighbour and his dog will see the crazy woman careening through brush and over bumps on the bright, shiny tractor. And these neighbours will wince and murmur prayers for my poor hubby who must put up with Rambo on a pint-sized machine.

I did finally get my diamond earrings after nearly 23 years of marriage. Fortunately for me my girlfriend, who understands about me and shiny things.... recently vacationed in Dubai and did a little shopping. I got a beautiful pair of diamond studs out of her trip - paid for by hubby's overtime, of course! I ADORE these sparkly gems. On the day that I got them I asked hubby if he minded if I loved my girlfriend just a little more than him on that particular day.... hee hee. Now maybe I should shop for a pair of stilettos to round off that sight ~ a woman, her sparklie ears, wearing stilettos and driving a red, shiny lawn tractor. Oh wait, I'll have to toss on a feather boa too, just to complete the picture. What a sight that would be! There would be one or two people who would cease boozin' on the spot with that image swimming about!

If that weren't enough to keep us busy this week, we then had one of those parent moments that sharply defines the life you had and the one that is coming. I'm talking about kids and independence, of course. Our daughter does not understand that she is our girl, whom we swore to serve and protect...oops, wrong form...that one was when we joined the Canadian Forces! I mean, the love and raise your child to be independent chapter!! We did a good job. Apparently we did an outstanding job.... you see, daughter left us yesterday for a 4 day adventure in another city. Without us. Without any emotional good-bye. Without one freakin' tear I might add. So much for sweet sorrow. I gave her the cellphone and we went over all the scary scenarios she might encounter and hovered...er, I mean WATCHED, as she packed her suitcase. Then she left. Happy and excited. Hubby is having some problems adjusting to the fact that daughter hasn't called. She probably doesn't miss us. Oiy, but that's a tiny prick to the heart - our baby doesn't need us! (Oh MOM she'll shriek, I'm NOT A BABY!!)

I know, I know....but I remember.... *sigh*....as I told hubby, we did our job. We did our job so well that maybe we did it just TOO darned well! Our job as parents is to raise healthy, adjusted and happy individuals. The teen years are when our little beloveds stretch their wings and prepare to fly from the nest and set out on their own. Yesterday is the start of that journey for our girl. There was a time when she was attached to my ankle and leaving her ANYWHERE without me traumatized her. When she was a toddler. Now she is a secure teen who is eagerly awaiting life and these short forays have given her a taste of youth and freedom and fun. She did ask if she had to call us once daily (imagine the NERVE of parents horrible enough to want THAT?) and I said no. I told her that if there was a problem we would know about it and if we didn't hear that means she was having fun and everything was fine.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

To get an idea of how high the water levels rose at their peak, here is a photo I took in February. It shows a local landmark (lighthouse) at a small park on the river. To the right is a playground but I'm not sure you can see it. In front of the lighthouse is a lower level with grass and a concrete walkway. The distance from the base of the lighthouse to the level of the ice is approximately 10 feet.

This is at the peak of the rising water. It is the same lighthouse as the photo above. I doubt those puny little sandbags have much value in keeping the water back...

This is the playground that you might be able to see in the first photo. It is slightly higher than the lighthouse. The second and lower level is completely submerged as is the wharf, boat launch area and part of the small boat club located nearby.

This is along the Kennebecasis River, just outside of Saint John, NB. Hubby and I had looked at a couple of homes along this river when we were house-hunting last summer. I'm very happy we chose the house on the lake instead!!

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

I refer to Entertainment Wrestling of course. Son's birthday gift from us was a ticket to see the WWE when they came to town. That happened on Sunday and hubby and I accompanied son to the event.

Matt Hardy. One of son's favourite wrestlers. Look at the luggage for one show!

Son had a great time and was enthralled with the live vs tv action he watches often. I was worried I would turn into one of those wrestling freak fans who scream and wave huge signs. It turns out that honour went to the woman beside me. She practically screamed my ear off during the 3 hour show. She was chaperoning two tween boys and quickly became enraptured by the flying bodies.

Findlay is a wrestler from Ireland and Hornswoggle is his diminutive sidekick, kind of a leprechaun. Findlay is the fellow wearing the green outfit in the ring and Hornswoggle is the short fellow in green beside the "W" sign.

I am not, and never will be, much of a wrestling fan. I work on the enthusiasm and interest because I love my son and this is something he wants to share with me. Along the way I've picked up the lingo, the theme music for individual wrestlers and their particular stats. I know Hornswoggle is a miniature wrestler who is Findlay's sidekick; he pops up as a cute little leprechaun during Findlay's matches. I know Big Show is 7 feet tall and over 400 lbs and that Kane is almost as tall but a whole lot scarier looking. I know more than I want to, believe me.

Ouch! That's gotta hurt! This is a tag-team fight; there are 2 teams and only 2 are supposed to fight at one time. These guys had a lot of fun with the crowd and seemed to enjoy themselves. Although that fellow in yellow probably had a sore throat after this! The "flying" fellow launched himself off the corner pole in order to get this height.

I took pictures for son. My camera tells me there are 513 photos that I snapped during the 3 hour event. A quick scan shows me that maybe 13 are decent photos and the other 500 are headed for the garbage can. I'm more intrigued by the wildlife in my backyard, truth be told.

Oh yes. The Divas. What show would be complete without the requisite boy toys? All these women did was walk around the ring, take off their wraps and model their bikinis and spiky footwear for the.... audience? If you look at the ringside you can see the men who rushed ringside to ogle...er, ADMIRE, their favourite femme fetale. It was one of the long-legged blondes who won "The Best Body" or something. Gee, girls, I hope you got paid well for this. And please don't mind me for NOT wanting my daughter to be like you. She has terrific looks and a beautiful mind. I would hate to see it wasted in such a time-warped wretched manner as this.

Here is Matt Hardy raising his arms in victory, after winning his fight with MVP . Matt Hardy is one of son's favourite wrestlers (today anyway!)

What a life these guys have. They had a show an hour up the road, earlier that day. Most pulled up in rental vehicles, unloaded their baggage shortly before the show and went in to perform. As soon as their 15 or 20 minute match was over, back to the dressing rooms to change back into their "street" persona...load up the rentals and drive off into the night. To another gig in another city. To another day and another fight or two. I don't know how lucrative this career is but there must be some passion for the sport and entertainment to put up with the travelling and time away from friends and family. It is not the life for me!

This is CM Punk with his adoring fans. This is another favourite wrestler of son's.

See CM Punk fly?

An ordinary person would never get up for more. Wrestlers however, seem to thrive on pain. What else would explain this next feat?

CM Punk dive-bombs OVER the wrestling ring and onto his opponent!

But wait! CM Punk still isn't done with his bag of tricks! Did this fellow come from a circus or WHAT??

Holy cow, another acrobatic feat! Is there anything this guy CAN'T do??

Yeah, he can't win....for all that effort and pain there was no gain. CM Punk's opponent, a fellow I nickname "Mr. In-Love-With-Himself" (for obvious reasons) takes home the victory today.

Our flying hero lies in a ruined heap on the mat. Er, maybe next time buddy, ok? The tricks were pretty cool though! Ya might want to get an icepack or two for later...

You did a decent job, guys. Some wrestlers put on a thoroughly enjoyable show; they worked the crowd and appeared to have a great time. Others just did the job and left. Your fans responded in kind and I've no doubt that a few more new fans joined the club.

Here's a hoot - and a typical setup in a show. Two hulks vs a little, puny fellow and his buddy.

The incredible hulk and his freaky partner are Big Show and Kane. The 7 foot 440 lb gorilla and his matching sidekick, Kane the Insane.

On the left is Chavo Guerrerro and HIS partner.... I don't recall his name. Now come on you guys. You really think we haven't figured this one out already?

D-u-h. See Kane move an arm. See Chavo fly.

Hey Chavo, all the bravado in the world isn't going to change the outcome of this fight! There's just something about the size of those 2 big fellows and come on~ did you really think you had a chance in this next situation?

As in really....what were you thinking?

Son knew this was going to happen ~ he told me when to get my camera ready for the shot! I'll let you in on a little secret for next time Chavo. There's this really BIG guy in wrestling, I mean even BIGGER than these two...The Great Khali. Give him a ring and see what he's up to the next time you come up against these 2 guys. Now THAT would be a match to see!

oh yeah - we never saw that one coming!

But wait ~ don't go yet! There is still "the feature event" of the evening: the best and the last! Here you thought you were going to escape pretty quick, huh, didn't you? Oh no you don't. I like to SHARE my misery wonderful experience with my loyal readers!

Meet the hero and the loser. It was a no-holds match, meaning the wrestlers could do what they liked, where they liked ~ so part of the fight ended up in the stands, much to the delight of the crowd.

Edge is on the left and Batista is the hulk on the right. Edge is a Canadian and is the evil guy. He insulted the crowd and hollered out that he was going to renounce his Canadian citizenship, he was so disgusted with us....and the crowd went wild! The fight had already been underway for a while when I took this photo. Here Batista is dragging a snivelling Edge back to the wrestling mat.

Not to fret though because Edge did get in a good whack or two with a chair....

Bad guys have to be really, REALLY bad. Edge has been on the "wrong" side ever since I was dragged into watching wrestling around 6 years ago. He's never one to let an opportunity to slip by so after the chair he moves on to ~

Some steps....

If that isn't enough to rile the fans then he moves along outside the ring to throw Batista into the protective fence. The guys wearing the yellow shirts are security. Otherwise zealous fans would get carried away and probably carry away a wrestler or two!

Alas ~ heroes must prevail and this story is no different. The happy ending was a bit rough though as our cheating low-life wrestler took his share...

...of smacks to the barrier...

Even though you KNOW the hero is going to get up after that beating it never fails to engage the crowd as if it were a completely new experience and it hadn't ever been seen before. Oh, did I mention we were in the no booze section? Poor hubby, he really wanted to suck back a beer or two, presumably to heighten his enjoyment of the show. Maybe that explains the behaviour of some of the crowd.

.

...high dives...

Booze, wrestling fans, booze, hyseteria. Oh yeah, I can see why the wrestlers don't mingle with the attentive crowds and throngs of fans watching them arrive and depart the arena (ok, guilty on this!).

...and finally, the ultimate finisher, "The Batista Bomb". The lucky recipient of this move basically gets a power-bomb drop on his head. He's usually down for the count once his head makes contact with the mat!

All that's needed to officially end the fight is the ref's 3-count and the bell ringing....hang on...here it comes...yes...yeeesss....and....

It's over! Hooray ~ the hero wins again! We can now go home!

This event might be over but son's enthusiasm certainly skyrocketed!

Son and hubby express delight following the final bell.

*sigh*....see you wrestling folks around....could you make it another 4 years before you come back again though? It'll take that long for my hearing to recover from the screaming fans and to review 513 photos and print the best for son's keepsake.

I live in New Brunswick, Canada, along the Fundy coast. This is the worst year for flooding since 1973. We are so far not affected, thank goodness, nor should we be. The flooding river is "over the hill and down the valley" from us so this whole region would be affected before we would worry. It would require an ark to help us at that point as the water would have to rise awfully high to get past that little mountain.

Some people know that we had some minor flooding during two severe winter storms that passed through within 2 weeks of each other. That was due to unusual conditions - namely, heavy rainfall and ice. The drainage systems were unable to work properly with the ice and amount of sudden rain, so everything basically overflowed throughout the cities in the region.

We have renovated the area in the lower floor that presented the water problem and it should not happen again....

You might also wonder if we could flood from our lake. The answer to that would be "possibly" ~ where there is water there is the chance. The levels would have to rise to a height never seen before and the calamity needed to cause THAT to happen would devastate the entire Valley region.

So thank you for your concern, to all who inquired. It is a nasty blow to the homes and businesses who did flood as it is likely they also suffered from the winter weather I mentioned above.

Saturday, May 3, 2008

There I was, driving down my street, heading towards home on a beautiful afternoon. Last weekend it was. When I spotted that same sight that makes hubby and I quite curious...

That bird. The strange looking one. Again! I threw the camera at my daughter and orderedpolitely askedher to take some photos while I drove after the bird.

I hope no one was watching us at this point because my driving was rather erratic. I was looking up at the bird and trying to follow the bird rather than the road. There might actually be some tire treads across a lawn or two....some dirt kicked up in a ditch somewhere..... but none of that really matters does it? I mean, we actually got some pictures I could BLOW up!

Here is a decent shot. The sun is shining on half of the bird and the colour division is clearly visible.

This is the same bird at a different angle. The shape of the wing and feathers are clearer here, although the picture itself is a bit blurry.

Does anyone have any idea what it is? I'll be looking through my bird books again. He appeared in a flock of approximately 12 to 15 of these and they were gliding in circles. I believe the beak was an orange-y colour.

It is so hard to sit when you are a child ~ especially when the weather is fabulous and there is a TRAMPOLINE nearby!! We put ours out last weekend and our niece loves it. She bounced by today for the express purpose of jumping to her heart's content. I could not pass up this photoghenic opportunity and so, I give you... PICTURES!!

Well that obviously worked! Now daughter is giving niece a lift! Uh...but exactly where are you two headed?? In circles perhaps??

Do you remember the fun and enthusiasm of youth? Remember when you would go and PLAY? Trampolines weren't available

when I was a child. The only jumping we did like this was when the fair came to town. There was a place called the "Moonwalk" and it was my absolute FAVOURITE! It was similar to a trampoline except that its surface was held up by air. You bounced and jumped through your time, which seemed to fly by. Do you remember that ride/adventure at the fair?

It was a feeling like no other ~ your hair would fly all around, if someone fell to the ground a huge indent would usually suck you in, so you would roll down to whoever was at the bottom. Then you'd have to climb and jump your way out. No WONDER we slept so well after going to the fair! Not to mention all the other rides of course.

As parents we hope for that same joy and fun for our kids. As our kids get older it takes more for that happy abandonment to fill even part of a day. For little ones though, whatever they are doing they are absorbed in it! My niece jumped until she had enough and then she came out for other adventures. Behind her she left one tired puppy!...

...shhhh! A teen needs her beauty sleep! DO NOT DISTURB! This one bites!

Here is my niece.... it looks like she's resting! So THAT's how kids recharge their batteries so fast ~ it's those freakin' minute long meditations they do! Actually, she was throwing the ball for our lazy dog, who is partially visible on the left of the photo. The pug in the background doesn't chase balls. Gee, that would be WORK for such a creature as himself!

Here she is using her... her... what the heck WAS that word she called it? Her "elli-opters" to look for the train that was about to go by on the other side of the lake. When I inquired as to what an "elli-opter" was, she described it as "those circle things you can see with!"....aaahhh.... binoculars!.... well, I kinda like her word for it. Makes it sound more round and appropriate. She did eventually see the train because it went by...and went by....and went by.....

and just kept going! Here she is watching the final cars go by. Boy, I see the future here. Zoom forward some years and she is standing and waiting for her kids, or her friend, or her dad to HURRY UP!! A mini-me! That exact same pose struck by mothers and women everywhere. I knew some things are just naturally part of being a girl!

You know you are a popular destination when your niece informs her mother that "she just LOVES it when she (mother) leaves!". As in, go away and leave me here to have fun! Don't worry small one, I have a craft corner just itching for little hands to make stuff. And yes, there is always the trampoline!